Metro shuts 2 stations, massive jams across Delhi

The Delhi traffic police’s helpline number started buzzing around 11 in the morning and the incessant ringing, just like Saturday’s rain, didn’t stop till late in the evening.

Traffic movement in the city came to a standstill, as most roads witnessed heavy waterlogging. Massive jams were reported from almost everywhere in the Capital. Traffic signals in many areas also stopped working.

Two Metro stations — Malviya Nagar and Saket — had to be shut down for more than five hours due to waterlogging.

“Water had reached till the concourse area of Malviya Nagar and Saket metro stations. We had to close them around 2pm,” said a Delhi Metro Rail Corporation (DMRC) official. Sources said both the stations remained closed for passengers till 6:30pm.

Passengers of a HUDA City Center-Jehangirpuri train were asked to de-board at Udyog Bhawan Metro station after sparks were noticed on the track. However, a Metro official said, “Operations were not affected and no major breakdown reported.”

But those on the roads were severely affected by the continuous rain and the subsequent traffic chaos.

“Traffic light at the Pragati Maidan intersection was not working and the road was waterlogged. It was a complete mess and it took me 30 minutes to reach the next traffic light, which was another nightmare. To complete my usually 20-minute journey, it took me over an hour in crawling traffic,” Sanjay Singh, a resident of Laxmi Nagar, said.

The tunnel near the airport also was flooded and the road connecting Terminal 3 with domestic terminal witnessed a jam in the afternoon.

“There was heavy traffic on both carriageways of the Dwarka underpass near the domestic airport,” a traffic police official said.